Bouchard Finlayson was founded by Peter Finlayson in 1989
Before that, he had been the first winemaker at neighbouring farm Hamilton Russell,
the first wine producer in the Hemel en Aarde Valley
The thatch roofed cellar building, featured on all the labels
Autumn vineyards with a view to Walker Bay
The fountain in the courtyard
and then into the cellar tasting room
Good lighting, comfortable seating and lots of space
A real find, a 2010 Pinot Noir on special offer for R195 a bottle
and a gallery of the awards the farm and its wines have received
We moved through into the lovely function room for our tasting with Danél Theron, Sales & Marketing Assistant
Lizette Kühn, Sales Manager, who had invited us to come and taste
She came to say hello and to catch up with what we have been doing during Covid
Danél was so hospitable, friendly and accommodating and gave us an excellent tasting of their current range of wines
We love sitting and talking to her about Bouchard Finlayson and the industry while we taste their superb wines
She has comprehensive knowledge about the Bouchard Finlayson wines
and they brought us a really comprehensive platter to enjoy while we tasted, full of charcuterie, pâté, biltong,
droëwors, cheeses, humus, olives, apricots, apples chutneys, and excellent fresh local bread
We began with an old favourite of ours,
a wine we sold very successfully when we had our food and wine shop, Main Ingredient
2020 Blanc de Mer, which is a blend of 64% Riesling, some Elgin Viognier and Chardonnay
As Danél says, it’s a Balcony wine for the Brits who visit and a Kuier (stay and relax) wine for the locals
Riesling arrives first on the nose, followed by honey hints from the viognier
Crisp and zesty Chardonnay shows first on the palate, then the other two arrive with good fruit
It takes you to the Mediterranean, and then the Riesling reminds you that it is there. A good wine with sea food too
The 2021 Sauvignon Blanc has fig leaf and green peppers on its classic nose
It is crisp and green with lovely gooseberry and Granadilla fruit and some fig
The 2020 Sans Barrique (unwooded) Chardonnay has a lovely perfumed nose of golden fruit and lemon zest
It is crisp and full on the fruit filled palate with long flavours of lemon, lime and apple
and has lots of enjoyable length and good crisp acidity
One word, Buy! You will not regret it
The Crocodile’s Lair 2020 Chardonnay grapes come from the Kaaimansgat near Elandskloof and Villiersdorp
Brioche richness, cooked apple, and pencil lead on the nose, the wine is full on the palate
with more cooked apple, caramel and rich pastry; another reminder of a Tart Tatin
Long, spirity flavours ending with some wood smoke; such an enjoyable wine,
which just gets better and better as you drink it
The Galpin Peak 2020 Pinot Noir spent 10 months in 30% new oak
It has a bit of wildness on the nose, with perfume of cherry and cooked rhubarb
It is soft and juicy on the palate, with careful wooding, long, long flavours of dark cherry berry fruit
and it says loudly, "Give me food"
The Tête de Cuvée (the pick of the vintage barrels) 2020 Pinot Noir came next
Only six barrels were produced, with 75% new oak. Sweeter fruit on the nose, lots of depth and class,
incense wood with bruléed cherries, sweet cherries and ripe mulberries, and that’s just on the nose
On the palate, there is a major hit of sweet cherries and excellent dark wood complexity
So, so good, this is a very special Pinot Noir, one of the best we have tasted in the Cape;
it will age really well, but is drinking so well now. Winemaker Chris Albrecht can be very proud of the wines he is producing,
especially these which are so hand crafted
The Hannibal 2019 is an unusual blend of Italian and French grapes:
47% Sangiovese; 15% Nebbiolo; 14% Pinot Noir; 11% Shiraz; 7% Mourvedre; 6% Barbera,
linking the two countries’ wines as Hannibal did with his elephants
A gamey, exciting blend on the nose, with wildness and hints of olive groves
Red and black berries follow through on the palate,
where more wildness and lovely zingy red berry fruit predominate and dance on the palate;
also calling for food immediately. It has long flavours, good tannins and some soft chalk;
and wood shows it face with dark licorice notes on the end.
The restaurants say it's a good fireside wine, served with game and rich meat dishes
A Cape river frog (Amietia fuscigula) on the edge of the fountain
We had a wonderful experience and thank Danél so much for spending such a long, enjoyable time with us
Do go and experience the wines and hospitality for yourself
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